Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced a resolution to enact sanctions against Azerbaijan in order to stop its "ethnic cleansing" of the ethnic Armenian breakaway Republic of Artsakh.
The republic capitulated last week after an invasion by an overwhelming Azerbaijani force killed around 200 ethnic Armenians, including some civilians, according to Artsakh officials. The 120,000 Christian Armenians in the region fear that they will be killed or severely persecuted by Azerbaijani forces if they stay, and they have begun a mass exodus to Armenia proper. Smith is urging the United States to act to prevent the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population, which has inhabited the region since at least the second century B.C.
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On Monday, he introduced the Preventing Ethnic Cleansing and Atrocities in Nagorno-Karabakh Act of 2023. It would enact the first sanctions against the government of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. The bill was co-signed by Republicans and Democrats.
“The Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh have, as ever, every right to continue to live in their ancient homeland—and to do so in safety,” Smith said. “My legislation will bring some relief and push the Biden Administration to act now to save innocent lives in the region."
“Tragically, they have been forced to disarm and surrender their independence to a ruthless dictator whose government has repeatedly committed horrific abuses against them over many years, expressed its will to ethnically cleanse them, and even initiated a genocide by starvation with the blockade of the Lachin Corridor,” he continued. “We must work with them to ensure that the transition is not marked by continued human atrocities.”
A senior adviser to the Armenian government, speaking with the Washington Examiner on condition of anonymity last week, speculated that the only likely scenario in which ethnic Armenians would stay in the Nagorno-Karabakh region is if international peacekeepers were sent to ensure their security. Smith's resolution doesn't suggest such a move but would require the Biden administration to lay out a systematic policy to deal with the crisis and sanction several officials in Baku, Azerbaijan's Capital.
The expected exodus of ethnic Armenians began soon after Artsakh's capitulation, and footage that showed long lines of cars leaving for Armenia proper emerged the past few days. The residents fear they could face death if they don't leave as soon as possible.
"The prevailing logic is if you stay, you're going to be massacred," the adviser said. "Unless there are international peacekeepers or international instruments protecting this population, this population isn't going to stay there because ... you know, it's a matter of time before Azerbaijanis have killed them."
"Or the magnitude of oppression is going to be to such an extent that who would want to live in a despotic regime, especially one that has demonized you and dehumanized you for your ethnicity for the last 25-30 years? Unless ... which is very unlikely, you get international instruments in there, the Armenian population, I just don't see any probability of them staying around," the adviser added.
Marut Vanyan, a local blogger, told Politico that the entire Armenian population is leaving.
“People right now say everyone is leaving. In Stepanakert, there is no second opinion, everyone is trying to find a few liters of petrol and be ready any time, any second, for when we are going,” he said, referring to the capital of Artsakh.
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A similar resolution, authored by embattled Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), was introduced last week by the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Azerbaijan has claimed the region since its independence following the fall of the Soviet Union. After losing a war against Armenia and Artsakh in the 1990s, Azerbaijan spent nearly 25 years building up its military, culminating in a brief but brutal war in 2020, during which Yerevan was soundly defeated after just 44 days of fighting. International mediation failed to bring about a peaceful solution to the crisis, which resulted in Azerbaijan's invasion last week.